LGRD and co-operatives minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Tuesday called on all those who struggled for democracy and press freedom to remain united to protect media independence.
He said that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led government was always committed to ensuring press freedom in the country.
Fakhrul, also BNP secretary general, made the remarks while addressing a discussion jointly organised by factions of the Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists and the Dhaka Union of Journalists at the National Press Club in the city, marking the dark chapter of Bangladesh’s newspaper history.
He said freedom had been achieved through a long struggle, which created space for press freedom, and the incumbent government was working to protect that freedom.
Criticising the political history of the Awami League, activities of which are now banned for atrocities committed during the 2024 July Mass Uprising, the BNP leader said the AL and democracy could never go together.
Both the one-party BAKSAL rule in 1975, and the 15-year fascist regime of Awami League in the recent past have made it evident that AL and democracy cannot go together, he said.
Alleging that various groups were trying to undermine law and order through false propaganda on social media, he urged all concerned for collective resistance against such efforts.
Fakhrul claimed that journalist repression and torture were at their lowest during the BNP government, adding that journalists currently enjoyed comparatively greater freedom than before.
Addressing the event, information minister Zahir Uddin Swapon said that media independence depends not only on the state but also on media owners.
He said that owners must ensure proper salaries, allowances, and a dignified working environment for journalists.
Zahir Uddin said the state must guarantee professional security and social status for journalists.
He also warned that media organisations claiming to be industrial institutions must operate under existing laws.
The information minister also said that the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution undermined the original spirit of the Liberation War by introducing one-party rule in January 1975.
The then rulers realised controlling the press was necessary to suppress public voice, leading to what he described as the ‘killing of newspaper freedom’ on June 16, 1975, he added.
Journalists leaders, among others, took part in the discussion chaired by DUJ faction president Shahidul Islam while BFUJ faction secretary general Kader Gani Chowdhury presented the keynote speech.
The day commemorates the closure of most newspapers by the then BAKSAL government led by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975, except two government-run newspapers—Dainik Bangla and Bangladesh Times and two other privately owned dailies.
The then government took over the ownership of the two privately owned newspapers—Daily Ittefaq and Daily Observer to run them as its entities. Due to the closures of newspapers, hundreds of journalists lost their livelihoods instantly.
